Device for the analysis of the sinking speed of blood corpuscles in a calibrated tube



March 19, 1968 s. MONN 3,373,601

DEVICE FOR THE ANALYSIS OF THE SINKING SPEED OF BLOOD CORPUSCLES IN A CALIBRATED TUBE Filed Aug. 2, 1965 Fig. 1 Fig.4

1 I f 12 I Fig.2 Fly 3 I 24 22 I 23 ULL 10- [Y ii5 j. 70 /IO 72 20 STAN/3L4! MOA/A/ 6% 3,373,601 DEVICE FOR THE ANALYSIS OF THE SINKING SPEED OF BLOOD CORPUSCLES IN A CALI- BRATED TUBE Stanislaus Monn, 115 Schulstrasse, 8105 Regeusdorf,

Zurich, Switzerland Filed Aug. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 476,404 Claims priority, application Switzerland, Aug. 5, 1964 7 Claims. (Cl. 7361.4) 10 ABSTRACT OF THE DHSCLOSURE A device for filling an elongated, hollow calibrated tube for the purpose of analyzing the sedimentation rate of blood corpuscles, having a resilient body which has an elongated recess therein opening outwardly at one end thereof, the diameter of said recess being slightly greater than the outer diameter of said calibrated tube. The body has annular sealing means adjacent the open end thereof, the diameter of said sealing means being less than the outer diameter of said calibrated tube. When said recess is filled with blood and the calibrated tube is inserted through the open end of the body and moved toward the other end thereof, the outer surface of said tube will sealingly engage said sealing means and the blood in said recess will be displaced into the interior of said calibrated tube.

This invention relates to an apparatus for the analysis of the sinking speed of blood corpuscles in a calibrated tube which is filled to a reference mark by the blood.

Several methods are known for filling the blood into the measuring tube but all of them have certain disadvantages. Among these methods is one, which theoretically is very simple. According to this method the lower end of the tube, which has to be filled, is inserted pistonlike into a cylinder which contains the blood for examination. By machining the cylinder wall and the tube a sufficient scaling is gained between these parts, which prevents escape of the blood along the outer surface of the tube. Therefore, the insertion of the tube into the cylinder causes the displaced blood to rise inside of the tube. The necessary machining of the measuring tube and the cylinder is a disadvantage, because of the considerable cost caused thereby. Another disadvantage is that the tube and the cylinder can be separated only with great effort if some blood has penetrated between these parts and 50 then dried. Finally the disadvantage should be mentioned that special arrangements are necessary to secure the tube in the cylinder in the position at which the top of the blood column in the tube stands at the reference mark.

The purpose of the invention is to provide a device by which the blood to be examined is filled into a cylinder, up to a reference mark on the tube also by means of a pistonlike insertion of the lower end of the tube, said cylinder being opened on the upper end and closed on the lower end, but whereby the mentioned disadvantages of the known device of this kind are avoided.

The device of the invention is mainly characterized in that the inner diameter of the cylinder is larger than the outer diameter of the tube and that the cylinder has an inwardly projecting, annular, resilient sealing lip at its 65 opening. The normal diameter of the sealing lip when the tube is withdrawn is smaller than the outer diameter of the tube and when said tube is inserted into the cylinder the sealing lip contacts sealingly the outer surface of the tube. m

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cylinder is a container consisting of rubber-elastic material,

closed at the bottom, said container together with the annular sealing lip consists of a single integral piece of material.

Further characteristics and details of the invented de-' vice are given in the claims, in the following description of an example and in the accompanying drawing, which shows an example of a preferred type of the subject of the invention.

FIGURE 1 shows a cylinder with a sealing lip formed as a rubber container and a measuring tube inserted into the cylinder, partially in an elevational view and partially in a vertical section;

FIGURE 2 is an analogous sectional view of the cylinder with the sealing lip alone;

FIGURE 3 is an elevational view of the cyilnder;

FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line IV-IV in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 5 which is drawn in a smaller scale, shows a holder with inserted cylinders, in one of which a measuring tube is inserted.

The calibrated measuring tube 10, shown in FIGURE 1 and 5, which is made of glass, is in common use and available in the trade pertaining hereto. The tube is open on both ends and has a reference mark 11, up to which the blood to be examined is introduced into the tube. Below the reference mark 11 the tube carries a millimeter scale beginning with the reference mark.

According to FIGURE 1 the lower part of the tube 10 is inserted into a cylinder, which is a rubber-elastic body or container for instance made out of caoutchouc. At its lower end the container 20 is closed by a bottom 21, while it has an opening 22 on the top. At said opening there is arranged an inwardly projecting, annular sealing lip 23, which together with the container 2% is made of the same piece of material and therefore is also rubber-elastic or resilient. When the tube '10 is withdrawn from the container 20, as shown in FIGURE 2, the diameter of the sealing lip 23 is less than the outer diameter of the tube 10. Moreover, the inner diameter of the container 2t) is somewhat larger than the outer diameter of the tube 10, as shown clearly in FIGURE 1. Above the sealing lip 23 the opening 22 has an enlarged, fannelshaped mouth 24.

The upper end part of the container 2% is reinforced by providing thickenings of material at the outer surface of the container, namely a peripheral rib 25 at the upper end of the container 20, and several longitudinal ribs 25 originating at the peripheral rib 25, the longitudinal ribs also extending outwardly, mainly shown in FIGURES 3 and 4.

Finally the device has a holder (FIGURE 5), which comprises a block 31 with several vertical bores 32, each for receiving a container 243. The already mentioned longitudinal ribs 26 of the container 20 constitute a base to support the container at the upper end of the respective bores 32, so that the containers 20 being inserted into the bores 32, each hangs in a vertical position.

The operation of the described apparatus is as follows:

The blood to be examined is taken directly from the syringe, which was used for taking the blood sample, and injected into an empty container 20, so that the liquid level is slightly below the sealing lip 23. Next, the lower end of a clean measuring tube 10 is slipped through the opening 22 into the container 20, the funnel-like enlarged month 24 making entry thereof very easy. The sealing lip 23 is pressed outwardly elastically by the tube 10, whereby a liquid-tight sealing contact of the sealing lip 23 with the outer surface of the tube 10 is assured. If the tube It) is further pushed into the container 20, a part of the blood is displaced. Since the sealing lip 23 prevents escape of the blood along the outer surface of the tube 10 effectively, the displaced blood rises inwardly in the tube 10. Now the tube 10 is pushed into the container 20 sufficiently until the top of the blood column has exactly reached the reference mark 11 of the tube. Because of the elastic stress of the sealing lip 23, the tube 10 is automatically locked in position relative to the container 20. The container 20 is then put into the holder 30. Since the container 20 is vertically supported in the holder 30, the tube 10 also has a position which is at least almost vertical. The measuring of the sinking speed of the blood corpuscles can now be conducted in the known and usual way.

After measurement, the tube It) can easily be pulled out of the container 20, whereafter these two parts can be cleaned easily and if desired can be sterilized by heating. If the blood in the container 20 and in the tube 10- is dried because of a too long waiting time, the container 20 still can be pulled from the tube 10 without complications, because there is enough space between the outer surface of the tube and the inner wall of the container to effect a crumbling of the blood crust through a Whipping movement of the container against the tube. Since the container 20 in the described example consists of rubber-elastic material, the container can be deformed by a sideways compressing such that any possible existing blood crust crumbles fast. Moreover it should be mentioned that a drying and incrustation of the blood between the tube 10 and the inner wall of the container 2%) in the above described apparatus in comparison to the apparatus mentioned in the beginning is delayed because in this construction a much wider space between the tube and the container exists than exists in the case of the cylinder with a tube ground therein.

Besides the advantages shown in the description above, the new apparatus has a further advantage, that commercial tubes 10 without an outer grinding can be used, because of the flexibility of the sealing lip 23, the outer diameter of the tube 10 may have the usual tolerance, without damaging the effectiveness of the apparatus. Another advantage results from the fact that the tubes 10 without an outer grinding and the container 20 having a resilient sealing lip 23 can be manufactured at a more favorable price than can tubes and cylinders which are ground to each other. Finally it is a further advantage of the new apparatus, that no additional means for holding and securing of the tube 10 with respect to the container 20 are necessary, since the sealing lip 23, due to its elastic stress, automatically holds the tube 10 in position.

In a not shown further embodiment of the invention,

1. A device for analyzing the sedimentation rate of blood corpuscles, comprising:

an elongated, hollow, calibrated tube;

a body having an elongated, cylindrical recess therein, said recess being closed at one end and open at the other end thereof, the diameter of said recess being slightly greater than the outer diameter of said calibrated tube and the length of said tube being greater than the length of said recess so that said tube can slide axially in said recess toward said closed end thereof and said tube will function like a piston to displace the blood in said recess upwardly into said tube;

annular sealing lip means mounted on said body adjacent said open end thereof and projecting inwardly from the wall of said recess, the diameter of said lip means being slightly less than said outer diameter of said calibrated tube, the lip means being of relatively small axial thickness and being flexible so that the tube can be forced therethrough and the outer surface of said tube will sealingly slideably engage said sealing lip means to seal the interior of said recess.

2. A device according to claim 1 wherein said body and said lip means are made of one piece of an elastomeric material.

3. A device according to claim 2 in which the body has a funnel-like enlarged mouth (24) extending upwardly from said lip means and having wall portions converging toward said lip means.

4. A device according to claim 3 in which said other end of said body (20) is reinforced by thickenings of material (25, 26) provided on the outer surface of the said body.

5. A device according to claim 4 in which there is provided adjacent said other end of said body (20) an outwardly projecting peripheral rib (25), and a plurality of circumferentially spaced, radially outwardly projecting longitudinal ribs (26) extending from said peripheral rib on the outer surface of said body partway toward said one end thereof.

6. A device according to claim 4 including a holder for holding said device, the thickenings of the material ('26) forming a base to support the body (20) in a vertical position in said holder (-30).

7. A device according to claim 6 in which the holder (30) is a block (31) having several bores (32) therein for receiving one body (20) each, which bodies are each supported on the upper end of each respective bore by said thickenings of material (26).

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,000,501 5/1935 Wade.

2,097,571 11/1937 Moran 23--292 X 2,263,845 11/1941 Hartsell 2 22-448 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,104,225 4/ 1961 Germany.

DAVID SCHONBERG, Primary Examiner. 

